RichT

Hello there everyone,

It's very nice to be here, and I really do hope that you can help my girlfriend and I out with our situation.......

I am 31 and looking to move my career from Sales into agriculture. Breaking into the industry at my age with no prior experience in the UK is incredibly difficult without a bit of luck or a lot of industry contacts. ( I don't have them).
So I decided after speaking to a few people that I should take the plunge and come out to NZ and get 6 months to a year under my belt and build up all the practical skills and experience with the machines (tractors, diggers, combines etc)

Now my other half is very keen to come with me, BUT she does not want to work in farming and has developed quite a good career so far in the charity sector and International development.
She would dearly love to come with me but we are very concerned that there aren't really any jobs out in NZ that would suit her? We cannot find a lot of evidence on the forums or internet of these kind of positions.

She also has a loan in the UK which she would need to earn enough each month to pay for and also live.

All in all having rushed in with great dreams and living and learning and generally seeing an amazing country, we now seem to be coming across a lot of quite negative press about people who have lived/worked out in NZ for a while and don't have much positive to say???
Is this true? - the pay being very poor?, the tax very high? - the accommodation being a rip-off , public transport being very bad etc etc...............

So after rambling on for a while, our perfect situation would be for both of us to go out there together - For me to get a decent starting position with a good farm that will allow me to learn all the skills and pay enough to get by.
Also for Emily ( my partner) to have a job nearby that would be in a sector at least relevant to the kind of sector she has been in.

We probably sound like a spoilt brats who want it all, but if there is any advice you can offer and if you can challenge the negative views which do seem to appear a lot on the internet I would be very grateful.

I really hope there is a positive solution to all this.

Thank you for reading this and any advice offered

Rich and Em

Caz8NZ

wOW, well firstly - don't focus on the negative press.

Life in NZ can be great - but it depends what you are looking for or expecting. Cost of living can be high, so can accommodation v quality. Pay isn't necessarily that great. Oh and public transport being bad...sorry - what public transport? Its not the Garden of Eden, but even with all that, I'm quite happy :-)

I'm actually wondering if what you want to do is possible.

Have you looked at what sort of visa you can get to enable you to come out here. There are various options - you are too old (sorry!) for a Working Holiday Visa. However, you may be able to apply for a Bunac Visa - I believe they are issued up to the age of 35 and its the same sort of thing as a working holiday visa.

Other work visas are offered usually on the basis of work experience and what you can contribute to the country. As you are wanting to come to the country to learn a new skill, I don't think you will be offered a working visa.

Someone may correct me with this - but also I'm not sure of the combination of finding work in farming and charity & international develop with go hand in hand location wise. There are less opportunities here in that sort of area as it is a smaller country. I would think your best bet for that work is in Auckland or Wellington. I also may be wrong with this - but if you are hoping for experience on a farm - you will probably be on minimum pay.

The best place to look for job opportunity ideas is seek.co.nz

Perhaps both of you should look into the Bunac visa - it gives you the flexibily to come over and try and see what you think about the working and living options available.

Justcol

I think you'll struggle to find a position in agriculture with no experience under your belt.
There are 1000's of agriculture and agribusiness workers and students here all with in depth
knowledge and hands on experience fighting for what few jobs there are.
Farming here is BIG business and is taken very very seriously, there's more to it than tractors and
diggers which most farm kids from the age of 12 can operate.
Look into agriculture / agribusiness courses to gain some knowledge first

waikatoguy

A few points :
Poor pay : Average pay in NZ is roughly the same as the UK (after converting for exchange rate). In some instances you will get more, in others less.
Tax : For those on above average salaries, income tax is lower in NZ than either the UK or Oz as NZ has more of a flat rate structure. There is also no capital gains tax in NZ. But NZ has a 15% Goods and Services tax on all purchases.
Those without much positive to say : Also remember to read about the people who have had positive experiences. Take into account (I reckon) that a lot of the people who really enjoy living in NZ are just out living their lives. It is more likely (I reckon) that people who are unhappy will more likely try and find somewhere (ie the internet) to vent their unhappiness with their lot. (just my opinion of course). Also remember that a large proportion of those who immigrate from the uk to nz are still here after 10 years (I read somewhere in the news recently). And immigrant surveys I remember seeing also suggest a high satisfaction rate in regards quality of life.

Having said that. I'm not sure it would be that easy coming here and starting up in agriculture. You would need a lot of capital. I suggest reading the blog by Sparkie Down Under in the Updates section on this forum. He became a farmer here. He didn't find it easy. If there's one occupation in NZ where 'who you know' counts for the most, it is farming, I think.

Catchafire

From a practical point of view, you can use your sales experience to get into agribusiness. There are heaps of companies that service the agricultural sector and from personal experience, most of the sales people really really suck at their jobs. I once interrupted a sales meeting of the branch of a large agrisupplier and bawled out the sales guy that was supposed to be dealing with our account.

I also worked as a rep for a company supplying vineyard equipment, which was good fun, I got to drive a tractor, my company car was a 4x4 UTE and I was out and about all day.

We live in Marlborough, which was a alien lanscape for us city slickers, my wife has a background in social work, but happily made the transition in vineyard work. She was employed by Pernod Ricard and they trained her from scratch to operate tractors, forklifts and harvesters. She has since moved on to another vineyard where she is helping train horses to take the place of a tractor.

So, all things are possible, the biggest hurdle for you guys is going to be getting a work permit/visa to start off with. Shame you missed out on a WHV!

dorrick

Don't know if this is any help to you

Farm stays / Wwoofing
Another great way to really experience New Zealand life and live with some Kiwis is to go on a farm stay. There are various groups such as WOOF which provide you with a book containing loads of farms that will take workers in exchange for accommodation and food. If you want to try something completely different like herding cows then this is for you!

WWoof - WWOOF allows volunteers to stay on organic farms, exchanging labour for a bed for the night and food
Help Exchange - Lists work in exchange for accommodation and food on farms
FHINZ - over 190 farms throughout New Zealand that are willing to offer food and board in exchange for 4 to 6 hours work a day

Caz8NZ

Please note that you should have a visa that allows work in order to do Wwoofing. It is considered as work as you are working in exchange for food and accommodation from the person you are working for. (However - I believe many people do undertake Wwoofing on a visitors visa - but you aren't supposed to).

I didn't suggest it in the first instance as it seemed like the OP needed to be earning.

I would like into the Bunac visa options if I were you as you may still be able to get a WHV under that scheme.

BEVS

Correct Caz8nz

WWOOF